


I Wouldn't Mind

by enbyred



Series: College AU [2]
Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, And I would die for her, F/M, Family Shenanigans, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Humor, Road Trips, hi i had fun with this, rayla is an emo weeb
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-14
Updated: 2019-05-14
Packaged: 2020-03-05 13:41:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18829810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enbyred/pseuds/enbyred
Summary: Rayla drags Callum on a road trip to get ice cream.





	I Wouldn't Mind

**Author's Note:**

> Remember in Learning to Dance chapter 6 "Scarf" when it's barely mentioned in passing that Rayla once dragged Callum on a road trip for the best ice cream in the country? Yea, I couldn't stop thinking about that.

The sun was barely peeking through Callum’s blinds when his phone started ringing. Some fuzzy part of his brain recognized that it wasn’t quite seven in the morning as he grabbed his phone and tried to answer, dropping it on his face in the process. He groaned, sliding the answer icon and giving a groggy, “Hello?”

“Oh good, you’re awake,” Rayla’s eager voice said.

Callum snorted. “I wasn’t.”

“You are now,” she told him. “Get dressed and come pick me up. We’re getting ice cream today.”

“Can’t it wait until a decent hour?”

“Absolutely not. It’s going to take a few hours to get there. I’ll give you gas money, and breakfast is on me.”

Sitting up in bed and running a hand through his messy hair, Callum replied, “You bet it’s on you. Who needs to travel a few hours to get ice cream when there’s a perfectly good Dairy Queen three blocks from campus?”

“This is better than Dairy Queen, trust me. It’s the best ice cream in the country. This is the last weekend before midterms hit, so we have to go now. If you’re not texting me that you’re outside in fifteen minutes, I  _ will _  be calling you repeatedly to make sure you’re coming.”

“Alright, alright,” Callum grumbled, stepping out of bed. “I’m up, I’ll get dressed, and you’re buying me coffee.”

“See you in fourteen minutes and forty-five seconds.”

Callum hung up, shaking his head, but couldn’t help the smile creeping onto his face. It was a miracle he’d agreed instead of just telling her no. But these days, it looked like he was taking any excuse he could to get out of the house. Ever since he’d told his aunt Amaya about Rayla and decided that it was stupid to keep her a secret, things had been tense at home. Amaya had made it clear how she felt about Callum’s friendship with Rayla, and despite how infrequently she was home, Callum didn’t want to deal with her attitude.

He threw on the first set of clothes he grabbed, and pulled on his jacket, texting Harrow that he would be out with Rayla for the day. Stepping over a sleeping Bait to get to the front door, he left as quietly as he could and got into his car.

He didn’t realize that this was how Saturday mornings were going to go when he became friends with Rayla. But he couldn’t say he minded.

-

Rayla was bouncing on the balls of her feet, checking her phone every ten seconds to see if Callum had texted her yet. She wasn’t going to miss his car, since she was standing on the sidewalk right next to the entrance to campus, but she couldn’t help herself. Hands shoved in the pockets of her hoodie, she kept moving to keep herself warm in the early morning air. October was bringing a chill with it, and she knew that she should have both worn a warmer jacket, and maybe made Callum take this trip with her sooner than mid-fall. But there was absolutely no way that she was backing out now. They were going to get good ice cream, and it was going to be great.

The moment her phone told her it had been fifteen minutes from when she hung up with him, she hit call. It rang three times before Callum picked up.

“I’m literally right down the street,” he told her, exasperated. “Give me ten seconds and I’ll be there.”

“Well you’re  _ late _ ,” Rayla replied. “Get your butt over here!”

“You’re impossible.”

Just as he said it, she saw his silver car round the corner and put on his blinker to pull in. Rayla was pulling at the door handle before he had even come to a stop, jumping in excitement while Callum rolled his eyes and tried to unlock the door. She pulled on it too quickly and pouted when it didn’t open.

“Open the door!” she whined.

Callum pressed the unlock button again and Rayla pulled, to no avail. He laughed. “I’m trying!” Pressing the button again, he watched her hand, and saw her wait a millisecond more before pulling. It didn’t open. “You’ve got to  _ wait _ , Rayla!”

She groaned and stamped her feet, shoving her hands in her pockets to let him unlock the doors. When she heard the locks definitively turn over, she threw the door open and slid into the passenger seat.

Pointing down the street, she instructed, “That way. Get on the highway, we’re going west.”

“We’re stopping at Dunkin Donuts first,” Callum said. “I’m not driving without caffeine for who knows how many hours to get ice cream I have no idea is worth it, and that’s your problem.”

“You can have as much coffee as you want,” she replied, holding out her hand. “Give me your wallet.”

Callum laughed. “That’s not how paying for my coffee works!” Still, he reached in his pocket and dug out his wallet.

Grabbing it from him, Rayla said, “Relax, I’m giving you gas money before I forget.” She transferred a few bills from her wallet into his and handed it back.

Callum thanked her and pulled into the drive through to wait to order. “So how far away is this allegedly amazing ice cream?”

“Five hours.”

“ _ Five hours _ ?” He groaned, sliding down in his seat. “You better have put a lot of gas money in my wallet, because that is way longer than I thought we would be driving today.”

Rayla waved a hand. “It’s fine, I gave you plenty, and if you need me to drive, I can. Just trust me, today’s gonna be great.”

They placed their orders, got their coffees and breakfast, and were soon on the road. Rayla plugged her phone into the aux and started playing her music, to which Callum quickly protested.

“How can you listen to this?” he asked, his voice halfway between a whine and a chuckle.

“What?” She elbowed him. “You don’t like bagpipe jazz?”

“Is that what it is?” Smirking, he said, “I thought it was just arrhythmic squeezing of rubber chickens.”

Rayla shook her head, scrolling through songs. “No, that’s this one.” She tapped on the song and let unholy screeching blast through the speakers. Callum yelped, covering one ear and grimacing as Rayla stared at him, her expression blank.

“You’re the  _ worst _ !” Callum yelled, trying to snatch her phone away from her. Before he could, she changed the song to the first “normal” thing she found. He was obviously trying to hide an amused grin behind his scowl as he said, “It is seven thirty in the morning, what would make you think I’d want to listen to that? I don’t think anyone can listen to those without their ears bleeding. Why do you even have those downloaded?”

She leaned over to put her head on his shoulder and grin innocently. “To torture you specifically.”

He rolled his eyes and gave her head an affectionate pat. She was impressed he’d even agreed to go, especially so early in the morning. But she couldn’t tell him just how important this road trip was to her. Not until they were there. He would see.

-

After four hours of enduring Rayla’s terrible taste in music as she jammed out as though her music was completely normal, Callum would have expected himself to be annoyed and ready to drop Rayla on the side of the road.

But for some reason, he still didn’t mind.

Her music was obnoxious, and it was inconvenient and irritating that she’d decided they had to take this spontaneous road trip as early in the morning as possible, but he wasn’t mad. When the trip was over, he expected that she would probably admit that he had every right to be angry. After all, ice cream was ice cream. They didn’t have to get it that very day, they easily could have waited. But what was the fun of planning a road trip? Spontaneous ones always ended up being more interesting. Even if “interesting” involved  _ bagpipe jazz _  and the entire discography of My Chemical Romance. Seriously, this was the only time he had even thought to question her sanity.

“Sick of me yet?” she yelled over the music.

Callum chuckled. “Which answer will make you play some Imagine Dragons?”

“Hmm.” She looked intently at her phone and scrolled through songs. “No Imagine Dragons, but can I interest you in some Naruto?”

He felt a piece of him die inside. “We’ve already listened to a bunch of Naruto, Rayla.”

A hand went to her chest as she turned to him in offense. “You absolute heathen. We have listened to Bleach, Death Note, Ouran High School Host Club, Fullmetal Alchemist, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Soul Eater, and Cardcaptor Sakura, but not a single song has been from Naruto. I am  _ appalled _  at you, Callum.”

Laughing, he said, “You’re listing all this anime, and _I'm_ the heathen?” He gave her a playful shove.

“These are good shows,” she told him. “Have you ever  _tried_   Fullmetal Alchemist? It’s an incredible story with deep, well-developed characters. They address war, racism, military led by corrupt officials in a corrupt government, and Callum, it’s  _ so _ good, you have to watch it - are you listening to me?”

“I am not.” 

Yet she continued anyway. For the next hour, she babbled about anime, playing music from whichever one about which she was talking at the time. He knew that anime was weird, but he certainly didn’t expect to hear about a show where people turn into death weapons and eat the souls of serial killers.

She only stopped talking about anime when she started giving directions again. Callum was impressed that she didn’t need a GPS to tell him which turns to take. She must be familiar with the area. Maybe she came out this way for ice cream more often than he thought.

“Turn in here,” she said, pointing.

Callum pulled over, but didn’t turn in, looking between the destination and his friend.

“Rayla, I don’t think this is ice cream.”

“It’s not,” she confirmed. “Pull into the driveway. The cops don’t like cars parked on the road around here.”

Hesitant, Callum did as he was told. He parked in the driveway and climbed out of the car, taking a minute to stretch his legs while Rayla bounced around to grab his wrist and drag him toward the front door. He expected her to stop and ring the doorbell, but instead, she threw the door open and walked right in.

“Wait, Rayla!” Callum protested, tugging on her hand. “We can’t just barge into someone’s house!”

Rayla rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips. “No, we can’t barge into a  _ stranger’s _  house. But we can barge into mine.” The smirk on her face as Callum sputtered told him that she had been planning this reaction the whole time. “Now come on in, take off your shoes, I asked Daelan to make lunch for us. Ice cream is after.”

He was completely dumbfounded. All Callum could do was stand in the doorway and process what had just happened. She had woken him up at the crack of dawn insisting that they were going to get “the best ice cream in the country,” dragged him on a five-hour road trip, and brought him instead to her own home to have lunch with her siblings.

Okay then. He could think of far worse ways to spend his day.

-

Rayla was laying across the recliner, much to the discontent of Leda, squished under her. Leda was desperately trying to wriggle her way out from under Rayla, to no avail, and with no help from Callum or Daelan, who were sitting on the floor, engaged in a conversation about drawing. It wasn’t clear to Rayla exactly how they could have such a detailed conversation about the right technique for drawing fingers, but then again, she wasn’t an artist. It was just nice to see Callum getting along so well with her siblings.

A timer in the kitchen sounded and Daelan dropped his sketchbook to run and tend to the food. Callum leaned back on his hands, grinning at Rayla. Just an hour before, he had been so annoyed with her and her dumb music and incessant anime talk, but his smile as he looked at her lit up the whole room.

Daelan entered the room balancing a large tray in his hands. He placed it on the coffee table and started distributing plates of fried rice and steamed vegetables. Rayla hopped up, finally releasing the annoyed Leda.

“Couldn’t you have used a little more salt on this?” Leda grumbled as she poked at the fried rice.

With a scoff, Daelan replied, “You haven’t even tasted it.”

Callum chimed in, “I think it tastes great.”

“See?” Daelan straightened his shoulders and smirked at Leda. “Some people understand that food is an  _ art _ , and too much salt will ruin it.”

Leda blinked at her plate for a moment. “No, that’s definitely not art. That’s something that isn’t taking me to Flavortown.”

Callum and Rayla both snorted, nearly choking on their food.

“You’re allowed to salt your own food,” Rayla pointed out, her mouth full. “Just watch how much, you know the doctor said your sodium is high.”

Rolling her eyes, Leda stood up. “Sodium, schmodium. If it doesn’t taste good, what’s the point?” She stalked into the kitchen to retrieve salt.

Daelan glared at his plate, shoving a forkful of rice into his mouth. “It tastes the way it should.”

Callum put a supportive hand on his shoulder. “You did a great job with it. Thank you for making lunch for us.”

That seemed to satisfy him, even as Leda returned and dumped salt onto her rice. Sometimes Rayla could forget how much of a peacemaker Callum was. Even though he bonded with Daelan almost instantly, he still gave attention to Leda and let her know that he wanted to learn about her as well. He made them both feel special and wanted, and as she watched him interact with them, she felt the smile on her face that warmed her heart.

There it was again. That feeling. It had been popping up more frequently lately, and usually when Callum smiled at her. Which, with how upbeat a guy he was, that happened pretty often. Sometimes it would catch her off guard in the middle of a sentence and derail her train of thought. Once or twice, Callum had noticed and felt the need to check that she was okay, which only made it worse.

It wasn’t that she’d invited these feelings, but she had just about given up fighting them. It was about time that she got used to the thought, since it wasn’t going away any time soon.

Despite the warmth in her chest and the flips her stomach was doing, she couldn’t bring herself to admit it, even silently. But that was okay. There was no need to rush, especially since he definitely didn’t feel the same way. And once she came to terms with it, that would be okay too.

-

As the day wore on, Callum only got happier that Rayla had insisted on this surprise road trip. There was nothing better, he thought, than sitting on the floor drawing Leda while Daelan complained that she would never pose for him. 

“I don’t pose for Callum,” Rayla informed them, sitting with her head hanging upside down from the recliner. “But he draws me anyway. How many times have you drawn me, now?”

Callum felt himself flush as he mentally tallied the drawings. “Uh...two or three that I’ve posted. A few...maybe six...that I haven’t.” He ducked his head and focused on the paper and getting the angle of Leda’s horns just right.

“Six?” Rayla sat up so quickly that she fell off the recliner. “I thought there were only three!”

Oops. “Uh...yeah, I mean...I sketch a lot, and you’ve got a unique look. Your hair’s cool, I like your style, and you’re just cute.” Of course that would be one of the first things out of his mouth. He bit his tongue, praying that she wouldn’t find it weird for her friend to compliment her like that.

“Aww.” Rayla shuffled closer and poked him in his drawing arm. “You think I’m cute. You’ve gotta if you’ve drawn eight, nine pictures of me.”

Leda broke her pose and smirked at Rayla. “Told you so.”

Turning to glare at her, Rayla threatened, “I  _ will _  tear your limbs off.”

Sticking her tongue out, Leda shot back, “You can’t hate me for being right.”

“But I can hate you for being annoying.”

Callum laughed and waved his hands to stop them. "Stop, stop! No need for dismemberment or hatred. Yes, Rayla, you're cute, and you're fun to draw. I can show you the rest of the drawings when we get back home." It was possible that that would keep her from killing Leda, but by the expectant look on Daelan's face, that was unlikely.

They did cool off, and when Callum finished his drawing, Rayla nudged Leda with her foot. "Do you want to get the thing for us?"

Leda brightened and scrambled to her feet, running out of the room.

Raising an eyebrow, Callum asked, "The thing?"

Rayla grinned widely. "I promised you the best ice cream in the country. It happens to be made right here in my home."

Leda returned with a tupperware tub of ice cream, along with four bowls and spoons. She scooped out ice cream and distributed it, sitting back to watch Callum's reaction.

Homemade ice cream. That definitely wasn't something he'd tried before, or really even considered. This ice cream was nearly frozen solid, but it looked just as appealing as any he'd had in the past. It couldn't be that bad if it looked so good.

He popped a spoonful in his mouth and couldn't stop the surprised, yet delighted sound that escaped him as soon as he tasted it. It was sweeter than he was used to, and creamier. He didn't think that ice cream could get any creamier, since it was literally cream. But somehow, Leda had managed to make it taste better than any ice cream he'd ever had.

"Wow," he said after swallowing his spoonful. "That's really good, Leda. You actually made this?"

She nodded excitedly. "I've been practicing making ice cream for a while now, our uncle's boyfriend has been teaching me." Pouting, she added, "I wish you could meet him, he's great."

"Maybe I will meet him someday," Callum assured her, taking another spoonful of ice cream into his mouth and keeping himself from screaming as he realized that he practically just invited himself to come over again and meet more of Rayla's family. While he certainly didn't see that as a bad thing, and they were very close, he had no idea if she was okay with him basically inviting himself into the family. But something told him he was going to find out soon.

"Maybe he'll teach you to make ice cream too," Rayla suggested, a smirk on her face. "Maybe not, though. He's very selective in who he teaches. He hasn't taught me, so only Leda has the secret recipe."

Leda nodded solemnly. "It's a heavy burden, but I will bear it. And I can tell him that you, Callum, are worthy of the secret."

"Thank you." Callum placed a hand over his heart. "It means so much to me that you see me as worthy of knowing a recipe so sacred. I will carry the secret with me until I die."

Rayla laid her head in his lap and tapped his nose. "Or until I drag it out of you."

Leaning over her, he told her in the most serious tone he could muster, "You have not been chosen to bear this secret. I'm sorry, Rayla, but you'll never know the true nature of the ice cream."

She stuck her tongue out at him, but didn't argue it as they finished off their treat. Leda took the remainder of the ice cream to put it back in the freezer, but when she came back, she had a small container that she handed to Callum.

"You can take it back with you. Don't worry about it melting on the drive. Just stick it in the freezer again and it'll be good as new."

Callum ruffled her hair affectionately. "Thank you so much, Leda, that's really sweet." He cast a look at Rayla, and hoped that she would understand that it meant that her bringing him on this trip was even sweeter.

-

They had planned to be back before dinner, but  when Callum and Rayla left the house and climbed back into his car, they knew they’d have to stop for fast food along the way. She gave him directions through her town, pointing out different places like her high school and her favorite places to hike. There seemed to be a story behind every piece of where she had grown up; everything was relevant, and she'd had adventures everywhere.

"-and that's where I broke my wrist the first time," she explained, pointing to an area off the side of the road that dropped off into a ditch before giving way to woods. "I broke my wrist a second time behind Denny's."

Callum snorted. "How in the world did you break your wrist behind a Denny's? Or do I not want to know?"

"I got into a fight, obviously. Behind a Denny's is the only noble place to have a fight. Except a McDonald's parking lot, but that one's only valid if it's between two and five in the morning."

"Right. Remind me to always default to you for advice on where the noblest places to fight people are."

"It's serious business, Callum. You wouldn't want to fight someone in front of a Joann Fabrics. That's just not the right aesthetic."

"Is fighting really that much about the aesthetic?"

"I come from a martial arts family. You have much to learn."

Somewhere in the trip, Rayla dozed off. Callum had noticed her getting sleepy and told her that he would wake her up if he needed her to drive, but when they did stop some time later and Callum nudged Rayla's arm to wake her, she didn't see a rest area. Instead, were parked in front of her dorm building.

Rubbing her eyes, Rayla said, "You didn't have to drive the whole way. I was the one who dragged you, I could have-" A yawn cut her off.

"It's fine," Callum chuckled. "Come on, let's get you upstairs."

She nodded and stepped out of the car, wobbling on her feet. She took a second to regain her balance, then took a step toward the door and lost her footing again, nearly falling to the ground.

Callum caught her by the arm and pointed out, "You don't seem too steady there. Do you need me to carry you up?"

Shaking her head, she pulled her keys out of her pocket and said, "I'm fine, Callum, just a little sleepy." She covered her mouth as another yawn escaped her. She had barely gone three steps when she swayed again and Callum pulled her arm around his shoulders to support her as she scanned them into the building.

The moment they were inside, he took the keys from her hand and swept her feet out from under her, heading toward the elevator.

Rayla squeaked, "I'm fine! You don't need to carry me, I can walk!"

"You just nearly fell three times," he reminded her. "Bad and sleepy Raylas get carried and tucked into bed."

She held tighter to him, burying her face against him. Only when he started fumbling with her keys did she being paying attention to her surroundings again, taking the keys from him and unlocking the door as she tried to put her feet on the floor. Callum held her tightly and carried her into the room, gently placing her in bed. He brushed Rayla's bangs away and planted a soft kiss on her forehead.

"Thank you for today, Rayla," he whispered, a ghost of a smile on his lips.

Catching his hand in hers, Rayla replied, "Thank you for coming with me. Was that ice cream worth it?"

"The best in the country, just like you said."

With a squeeze of his hand, Rayla stretched and said, "You should get home. It's late."

He complied and left her room, leaving her alone in the dark. She touched the spot he'd kissed, and smiled to herself. Her heart was beating fast, but for once, it didn’t bother her. Maybe it really was okay to admit it to herself. Maybe life wouldn’t be so bad knowing that she was in love with Callum. Maybe that was something she wouldn’t mind.


End file.
